From Chapter 20 from Bodie, Kane, and Marcus 3rd edition)

 

(1st 2 pages were done by hand)  :Know drawings of payoff diagrams

 

Intrinsic value = value if exercised today

 

value also made up of volatility and time value

 

Be able to follow a WSJ index listing and see that

                    +  -  + +  +    -

call value =f(S,X,σ,T,Rf,div)                                         Table 20.1 p 651

 

 

Restrictions on Option value

Upper bound (price no one would ever pay more than this for the option)

            stock price    (assuming limited liability)

 

Lower bound    = “adjusted intrinsic value”

                        = Stock price - PV(x) - PV(div)                      

                        = So - PV(x) - PV(div)

            Logic:

 

Consider 2 portfolios:

            1. a call with strike price X

            2. a share of stock and borrowing the PV(x) as well as the PV(div)

 

                                                            At expiration:               

                       

State of Nature

if S<x  

if s>x

value of call

0

s-x

 

 

 

Value of share

S

S

 repayment of loan

-X-D  (and x>s)

-X-D

       total

S-x-d

S-x-d

 

 

Option payoff is greater than leveraged stock position

            therefore the price of the call must be greater stock -PV(x)-PV(div)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Early Exercise of American puts

 

A call option holder can close out his position by either selling the call or by exercising the option

 

Assume the call is in the money

You exercise and get S-X, but we just showed that you can sell it (lower bound) for S-PV(x)-PV(d)

Since PV(x)<X, you would rather sell it than exercise it.

 

Thus for a NONDIVIDEND PAYING STOCK A European option and an American option are virtually identical. (at least no dividends over the life of the option)

 

 

Early exercise of American Put options is possible in the case of bankruptcy.  Stock falls to zero.  Now you want the money now as it can not fall past zero and waiting lowers PV.

What about for a few cents?  Is it worth waiting?  Depends on interest rates.

 

 

Pricing Models:

 

A. Binomial Option Pricing Model

            assume the stock can only be at one of two prices at expiration

           

            Current stock price =$100..stock can be either $200 or $50 at the end of period.

Call with a strike of $125, T=1 year

 

so the payoff from this call is either 0 or $75.

 

Alternatively you could buy the stock and Borrow $46.30  (PV($50) if i=8%)

           

            At year end      value of stock               50                    200

                        repay loan                              -50                     -50

                                    total                              0                      150

 

this is exactly double the call....we know the outlay needed to initiate this position: $100-$46.30=$53.70.

            so since this is twice a call, the call price must be $26.85  If not there is an arbitrage position available.

 

The keys to this are the idea of a replicating portfolio and that you can perfectly hedge your position

write 2 calls....

            stock value                                           50                    200

            -obligation from shorting calls                0                      -2(75) 

            total                                                      50                    50

 

thus this is RF...do it should cost pv(50) = $46.30

                        thus 100-2c=$46.30

           

B. Black Scholes Pricing model

 

p. 662

 

 

Very widely used model!

Succinct. 

Need to know partial derivatives! 

 

The key is to understanding B-S is the N(d) term.....

            risk adjusted probability of expiring in the money

 

most widely used model

 

assuming no dividends until option date

i-rates and volatility are known and any changes is predictable

stock price movement is continuous

 

implied volatility-backing out projected volatility

 

much time is spent on trying to calculate variance(forecasted)  grach-egarch, agrach models.

 

Dealing with Dividends

            two main ways

                        1. Assume early exercise at dividend date

                        2. Use ex-dividend stock price

 

            take the higher of the two for a pseudo-American call option

 

Hedge ratios”

Delta

 

p 671

 

Portfolio insurance       

                        hedge ratio constantly changes...

                        selling a portion of your stock and investing in T-bills.  Get the same payoff as a protective put.

 

N(d1)= probability of ending up in the money.

 

also the delta hedge ratio

            usually between 0 and 1. 

 


Option positions

 

 

spreads

            money spread

            Time spread

Strangles

 

 

Using (and seeing) options that are not “so labeled” is critical. 

Example: levered equity is a call. 

            Jr. Debt is similar to a bull spread.

 

Using B-S allows us to predict how participants will fight over things etc.

 

 


Futures:

 

similar to forward, but more standardized, liquid etc

Developed largely as agricultural product, now (since 1975, financial as well)

 

Futures exchange clearinghouse

·        Clearinghouse acts as counterparty to all trades

·        acts as a guarantor, oversees delivery, bookkeeper, and settlement treasurer

 

Profits:

            Long position

                        Spot price at maturity-original futures price

            Short position

                        Original futures price-spot price at maturity

 

Trading takes place in the “pits  (see Trading Places)

 

 

To get out of a contract: reversing trade

 

Maintain margin accounts.  Maintenance margin is usually 75% of the initial margin

 

 Futures are marked to market daily. 

 

Basis = spot (t)-Future price (t,T)

where (t,T) is the future price of a contract at time t that matures at T

A buy contract specifies that the individual will accept delivery and hence “buy” the commodity.  A sell contract specifies that the individual will make delivery and hence “sell” the commodity.

 

The units of trading vary with each commodity.  For example, if the investor buys a contract for corn, the unit of trading is 5,000 bushels.  If the investor buys a contract for eggs, then the unit of trading is 22,500 dozen.

 

Selected Commodities, Their Markets, and Their Units of Trading

Commodity                  Market                                                             Unit of Contract

Corn                            Chicago Board of Trade                                   5,000 bushels

Soybeans                     Chicago Board of Trade                                   5,000 bushels

Barley                          Winnipeg Commodity Exchange                        20 metric tons

Cattle                           Chicago Mercantile Exchange                           40,000 pounds

Coffee                          New York Coffee and Sugar Exchange 37,500 pounds

Copper                                    Commodity Exchange, Inc., of New York         25,000 pounds

Platinum                       New York Mercantile Exchange                       50 troy ounces

Silver                            Commodity Exchange, Inc., of New York         5,000 troy ounces

Lumber                        Chicago Mercantile Exchange                           100,000 board feet

Cotton                          New York Cotton Exchange                             50,000 pounds

 

The commodity exchanges are subject to regulation.  Federal laws pertaining to commodity exchanges and commodity transaction laws are enforced by the Commodity Exchange Authority, which is a division of the Department of Agriculture.  

 

Commodities are paid for on delivery.  Thus, a contract for future delivery means that the goods do not have to be paid for when the individual enters the contract.  Instead, the investor (either a buyer or a seller) provides an amount of money, which is called a margin (good faith deposit).  The margin should not be confused with the margin that is used in the purchase of stocks and bonds.

 

In the commodity markets the amount of margin does not vary with the dollar value of the transaction.  Each contract has a fixed minimum margin requirement.   At least according to Mayo (investments)

 

Note that the actual numbers will not be on the test, but if you are looking for more recent numbers for your own personal use they can be found at  http://WWW.FADC.COM/pdf/99specs.pdf combined with http://WWW.FADC.COM/trf_mar.htm.

 

Margin Requirements for Selected Commodity Contracts at the time of publication (1994)

                                    Margin                         Financial                                   Margin

Commodity                  Requirement                 Futures                                     Requirement

Broilers                        $  500                          S&P 500                                  $20,000

Cocoa                          1,000                          NYSE Composite Index               7,000

Cotton                          1,000                          Value Line Index                        20,000

Hogs                                800                          Treasury Bonds                            5,000

Lumber                        1,200                          Treasury Bills                                1,500

Potatoes                           500                          Municipal Bonds                           4,000

Soybeans                     1,500

Wheat                          1,000

 

* Small amount of margin is one reason why a commodity contract offers so much potential leverage.

* margins can change with market conditions.  As volatility increase, the margins are increased

* Example

            * a contract to buy wheat at $3.50 per bushel

            * controls 5,000 bushels of wheat worth a total of $17,500 (5,000 X $3.50)

            * must remit $1,000

            * an increase of only $0.20 per bushel produces an increase of $1,000

 

* The percentage return on the investment is 100%.

 

* An increase of less than 6 percent in the price of wheat produced a return of 100 percent.

 

* Leverage, of course, works both ways.  If the price of the wheat declines by $0.10, the contract will be worth $17,000.  A decline of only 2.9 percent in the price reduces the investor’s margin from $1,000 to $500.  To maintain the position, the investor must deposit additional margin.  Failure to meet the margin call will result in the broker’s closing the position.

 

There are two margin requirements.  The first is the minimum initial deposit, and the second is the maintenance margin.  For example, the margin requirement for wheat is $1,000 and the maintenance margin is $750. The maintenance margin is usually 75% of the initial margin.

 

The margin adjustments occur daily.  After the market closes, the value of each account is totaled.  In the jargon of futures trading, each account is marked to the market.

 

Limits are imposed by the markets on the amount of price change permitted each day. 

 

Taxes and Futures

All positions in futures are considered to have been closed at the end of the tax year.  Open positions then must be marked to the market on the last day of the tax year and any paper profits taxed as if they were realized capital gains.

 

The profits are arbitrarily apportioned as 60 percent long-term capital gains and 40 percent short-term capital gains.

 

 

 

Programmed trading refers to the coordinated purchase or sales of an entire portfolio of securities.

 

Arbitrage refers to the simultaneous establishment of long and short positions to take advantage of price differentials.

 

Index arbitrage is no different, except the arbitrageur is buying or selling index futures and securities instead of pounds.  If prices deviate in different markets, an opportunity for arbitrage is created.

Programmed trading index arbitrage - if stock index futures prices rise, the arbitrageurs will short the futures and buy the stocks in the index; if futures prices decline, the arbitrageurs do the opposite.

 

Three potential problems:

            * transactions costs

            * there is an obvious problem with buying or shorting all the securities in a broad-based

                        index.  To get around this program, the arbitrageurs have developed smaller

                        portfolios called baskets that mirror the larger index.

·        for arbitrage to be riskless, both positions must be made simultaneously

·